Palm Beach Sheriff ’s deputy fired over social media posts

Former Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Jason Van Dusen was fired last week after a suspension over a number of posts he allegedly made on Facebook and Twitter, PBSO spokeswoman Teri Barbera said.

Van Dusen, who was assigned to patrol in the village of Royal Palm Beach, was under investigation by the department’s Internal Affairs office after he allegedly made multiple posts from his personal social media accounts.

“There have been complaints/allegations and that is what [Van Dusen] has been investigated for and ultimately fired for,” Barbera wrote in an email.

Everett Stern is the founder and intelligence director of Tactical Rabbit, a private intelligence agency composed of former government agents and intelligence community members. He wrote a letter to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw and included screenshots of some of Van Dusen’s posts.

“To be frank, we have never heard of a law enforcement officer post such an extreme level of racist remarks against African Americans, Muslims, Jews, and Women,” he wrote. “The posts below are just a sample, but the thousands of overall posts also concern defamatory remarks against government officials including the President of the United States.”

One Facebook post appears to show Van Dusen smoking a cigar while in uniform with the caption, “Taking a break after two shootings tonight.” Another reads “The Taser is like a time out for adults …”

A Twitter post from an account linked to Van Dusen shows a picture of former First Lady Michelle Obama next to what appears to be a character from “Planet of the Apes.” Another tweet from his account quotes a post made by another user that reads “Reminder - If I die in Police Custody, I did not kill myself.” Van Dusen retweeted with the caption, “and a new contender arises!!”

This was the second time he had been suspended from the department.

In 2014, he was suspended for two days for social media posts of a similar nature.

Stern grew up in Wellington and spent about a year as a whistleblower informing the government of HSBC bank’s funding of terrorist organizations and drug cartels. He said in an interview that he believes Van Dusen is a public safety risk.

Stern alleges that many of the social media posts were made while Van Dusen was on duty, and that there are at least 10 other deputies who engaged with Van Dusen on social media. He wants an investigation into civil rights violations and possible obstruction of justice.

He could not provide the names of anyone else involved, citing the need for protecting their methodology, which he said is also used to assist the government in counter-terrorism and narcotics operations.

“We know who they are,” he said.

Stern said he hired a former National Security Agency contractor to investigate Van Dusen’s social media activity and that he paid the contractor $15,000 for his work.

Van Dusen could not be reached for comment.

A Twitter post from an account linked to Van Dusen shows a picture of former First Lady Michelle Obama next to what appears to be a character from “Planet of the Apes.” Another tweet from his account quotes a post made by another user that reads “Reminder If I die in Police Custody, I did not kill myself.”